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Somers History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Suggested Reading Citations

Somers History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Germany

The German state of Bavaria is the ancestral home of the Somers family. Nickname surnames, such as Somers, were derived from an eke-name, or added name. They usually reflected the physical characteristics or attributes of the first person that used the name. The family name Somers is a name for a person born in the summer. The name comes from the Old German word "sumar," which means "summer."

Early Origins of the Somers family

The surname Somers was first found in the region of Lower Franconia, where the name acquired a significant reputation for its contribution to the emerging mediaeval society. They later became more prominent as many branches of the same house acquired distant estates and branches, some in foreign countries. They were always elevating their social status by their great contributions to society.

Early History of the Somers family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Somers research. Another 137 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1800, 1814, 1832 and 1846 are included under the topic Early Somers History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Somers Spelling Variations

In the medieval era, many different cultural groups lived in the German states. There are thus many regional variations of German surnames from that era. Westphalians spoke Low German, which is similar to modern Dutch. Many German names carry suffixes that identify where they came from. Others have phrases attached that identify something about the original bearer. Other variations in German names resulted from the fact that medieval scribes worked without the aid of any spelling rules. The spelling variations of the name Somers include Sommer, Sommers, Summers, Somer, Somers and others.

Early Notables of the Somers family

Prominent among members of the name Somers in this period include Franz Joseph von Sommer (d. 1832), who published an innovative work on military training and took part in the 1814 campaign in France; Carl, his oldest son, was in the service of...
Another 43 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Somers Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Somers Ranking

In the United States, the name Somers is the 3,360^th most popular surname with an estimated 9,948 people with that name. 1 However, in Netherlands, the name Somers is ranked the 925^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,209 people with that name. 2

Somers migration to the United States +

The great European flow of migration to North America, which began in the middle of the 17th century and continued into the 20th century, was particularly attractive to those from Bavaria who wished to escape either poverty or religious persecution. For many Bavarian tenant farmers, the chance to own their own land was a major incentive. So the widespread colonization of the United States began in 1650, when many immigrants from Germany settled in pockets in Pennsylvania, Texas, New York, Illinois, and California. In Canada, German settlement centered in Ontario and the prairie provinces. Among those of this surname listed in various historical records were:

Somers Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Sir George Somers, (1554 - 1610), who was aboard the ship "Sea Venture" who wrecked in Bermudas in 1609, they managed to build a new ship to continue to Jamestown in 1610, returned to Bermuda for supplies and died on the ship. 3
Capt. Henry Somers, who was aboard the ship "Sea Venture" who wrecked in Bermudas in 1609, they managed to build a new ship to continue to Jamestown in 1610.
Mr. James Somers, aged 22, from England who arrived in Virginia aboard the ship "America" arriving in June 1635 3
Abraham and Alexander Somers, who settled in Virginia in 1655
Alex Somers, who landed in Virginia in 1655 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Somers Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Joseph Somers, who arrived in Georgia in 1733
George Somers, who arrived in Philadelphia in 1753

Somers Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Somers, aged 44, who landed in Massachusetts in 1813 3
J H Somers, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1855 3
William Somers, who arrived in Mississippi in 1857 3
Charles Somers, aged 26, who landed in Mobile, Ala in 1874 3
Thomas Somers, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1876 3

Somers migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Somers Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century

Jane Somers was a merchant of St. John's, Newfoundlandin 1765 4

Somers Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Joseph Somers, who settled in GooseBerry Cove, Newfoundland in 1800 4
Jo Somers, who arrived in Canada in 1812
Jo Somers, aged 20, who landed in Canada in 1812

Somers migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Somers Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

James Somers, English convict from Surrey, who was transported aboard the "Asia" on April 1st, 1822, settling in New South Wales, Australia 5
Mr. John Somers, English convict who was convicted in Gloucester, Gloucestershire, England for 7 years, transported aboard the "Bengal Merchant" on 13th March 1828, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 6
Edward Somers, aged 33, a labourer, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Bucephalus"
Edward Somers, aged 17, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Bucephalus"
Elizabeth Somers, aged 22, a domestic servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1855 aboard the ship "Bucephalus"
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Somers migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Somers Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Mr. Henry Somers, Scottish settler travelling from Clyde aboard the ship "Robert Henderson" arriving in Port Chalmers, Dunedin, Otago, South Island, New Zealand on 5th October 1861 7
John Somers, aged 22, a labourer, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Howrah" in 1874
Mary Somers, aged 18, a servant, who arrived in Wellington, New Zealand aboard the ship "Howrah" in 1874
Ellen Somers, aged 38, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Dunedin" in 1875 8
Maretta Somers, aged 20, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Dunedin" in 1875 8
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Somers (post 1700) +

Suzanne Marie Somers (1946-2023), born Suzanne Marie Mahoney, an American actress, author, singer and businesswoman, known for her television roles as Chrissy Snow on Three's Company
Brett Somers (1924-2007), born Audrey Johnston, Canadian-born, American actress, singer, and comedienne, best known for her role as Blanche Madison opposite her real life husband Jack Klugman on The Odd Couple
Steve Somers (b. 1947), American talk radio host
Richard Somers (1779-1804), American officer of the United States Navy, eponym of six US Navy ships
Charles Somers (1868-1934), American executive and investor in baseball
Robert Somers (1822-1891), Scottish journalist and author, son of Robert Somers by his wife, Jane Gordon Gibson, born at Newton Stewart in the county of Wigtown
Edmund Sigismund Somers (1759-1824), Irish physician, born in Dublin about 1759, the son of William Somers, a mechanic
Walter Somers (1839-1917), English engineer and businessman from Repton, Derbyshire who founded Walter Somers Limited which produced military items for use by the British Admiralty during World War I
Daryl Paul Somers OAM (b. 1951), born Daryl Schulz, Australian triple award winning Gold Logie Award winning television personality and musician
Karl Somers (b. 1992), Irish footballer from Finglas, Dublin
... (Another 2 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Historic Events for the Somers family +

Empress of Ireland

Mr. Matthew Somers, British Fireman from United Kingdom who worked aboard the Empress of Ireland (1914) and survived the sinking 9

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in Netherlands." Forebears, https://forebears.io/netherlands/surnames
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Seary E.R., Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland, Montreal: McGill's-Queen's Universtity Press 1998 ISBN 0-7735-1782-0
State Library of Queensland. (Retrieved 2016, October 27) Asia 1 voyage to Van Diemen's Land, Australia in 1822 with 190 passengers. Retrieved from http://www.convictrecords.com.au/ships/asia/1822
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 7th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/bengal-merchant
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 9th November 2011). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
Commemoration Empress of Ireland 2014. (Retrieved 2014, June 17) . Retrieved from http://www.empress2014.ca/seclangen/listepsc1.html